“Our House” was founded in December 2002 as a self-published newspaper with the same name in Belarus. In 2010, the formerly small-format newsletter “Our House”, which told citizens about concrete examples of fighting for their rights, evolved into a real colorful full-size newspaper for free distribution to the mailboxes of residents of Belarusian cities – facing multiple arrests, detentions of circulation, arrests of activists with copies and fines.
Due to numerous violations of citizens’ rights, it was not possible to register as an organisation in Belarus. In 2014, “Our House” was registered in Lithuania and has since been presented as a non-profit organisation, International Centre for Civil Initiatives “Our House”
After the presidential election and protests in Belarus in 2020, and the war unleashed by Russia against Ukraine in 2022, a huge number of people in Belarus and Lithuania were in need of humanitarian assistance. Thus, “Our House” has taken over the provision of this assistance. Paying fines and food to victims in Belarus, providing psychological support, finding jobs, and helping refugees in Lithuania with accommodation, food and clothing became the main activities of “Our House” today. Our House also continues to monitor human rights violations in cooperation with other organisations.